★★★★ Any new Pixar film is cause for celebration. While many modern animation studios have tried to keep up with the consistently excellent quality of the Disney/Pixar collaborative brand, few have resulted in their staggering frequency of masterpieces. Coming on the heels of Turning Red and Lightyear, Elemental reminded me most of Inside Out—definitely a … Continue reading Tribeca 2023: Elemental
Film Review: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
★★★★★ Serving as the definitive Spider-Man cinematic experience, Across the Spider-Verse expands the scope of the mythology like never before, forming a deeply emotional visual extravaganza. This trio of directors (Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson) have crafted a movie that manages to transcend its complex inspirations. While the previous animated iteration, Into … Continue reading Film Review: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Film Review: The Little Mermaid
★★★ Love them or hate them, the live action Disney remake is here to stay. The newest, 2023’s reimagining of The Little Mermaid, seems to be one of the most divisive yet, judging by early online reactions. For me, the film was a long time coming—as a child, I would rewatch the 1989 original on … Continue reading Film Review: The Little Mermaid
Film Review: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
★★★★★ Cementing itself as one of the greatest action/sci-fi trilogies of all time, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 delivers a stunning spectacle of effects, and dazzling emotionality to boot. James Gunn pulls out all the stops to make sure the Guardians are given a sendoff worthy of celebrating. A particular standout this go round … Continue reading Film Review: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Film Review: Beau is Afraid
★★★★★ Ari Aster’s film career thus far could lovingly be called divisive and polarizing; for this viewer, both Hereditary and Midsommar are among the best horror films made in the last decade. With Beau is Afraid, Aster enters his dark dramedy era in a flourish of brashness and a crescendo of emotionality. Due to the … Continue reading Film Review: Beau is Afraid
Film Review: The Portable Door
★★★ In the time since the Harry Potter series began, countless imitators and outright copycats emerged in an attempt to emulate its tone and style. Few, if any, survived. The newest in a long line of these types of films is entitled The Portable Door, based on the seven-book series written by Tom Holt. A … Continue reading Film Review: The Portable Door
Film Review: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
★★★★★ Having freshly rewatched 2000’s wildly misguided and ridiculously campy Dungeons & Dragons, the prospect of a new take on the tabletop classic was probably the last thing on any film buff’s mind. Infamously, that iteration was a box office bomb that failed to kickstart a new franchise despite the presence of a relatively solid … Continue reading Film Review: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Berlinale 2023: Deep Sea
★★★★ Animation as a medium is often undersung and underestimated—all the more reason to seek out nearly every animated film that I come across. In recent years, some of my favorite animated features have emerged from the film festival circuit. Last year alone, 2D-animated marvel Titina, bizarre ultra-gory Unicorn Wars, stop motion horror fantasy Wendell … Continue reading Berlinale 2023: Deep Sea
TV Review: Wolf Pack
In a surprising turn of events that must be confusing to a number of people, Teen Wolf creator/showrunner Jeff Davis has set his sights on another werewolf show set in a brand-new universe! Aptly titled Wolf Pack, this Paramount+ series carries the star power of Buffy icon Sarah Michelle Gellar, and a cast of young … Continue reading TV Review: Wolf Pack
Film Review: Teen Wolf: The Movie
★★★★ Back in 2011, MTV’s Teen Wolf came roaring into a very different kind of television landscape ready for a major shakeup. Heavily inspired by the format and style of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Jeff Davis’s Teen Wolf become one of my favorite shows during the course of an impressive 100-episode run. Nearly six years … Continue reading Film Review: Teen Wolf: The Movie